MacArthur students take the next step

Hofstra University’s Mack Sports Complex was a sea of blue caps and gowns as 356 members of MacArthur High School’s Class of 2014 celebrated the school’s 53rd annual commencement.

Led by Principal Kathleen Valentino, members of the administration, the school staff, Board of Education trustees and graduates filed onto the arena floor as the symphonic band played “Pomp and Circumstance.”

Class President Andrew Spinelli led the Pledge of Allegiance, after which the senior choir sang the national anthem. Valentino then addressed the students, explaining that they have been a special class “known for their energy and creativity.”

“You have evolved and matured more than those before you, and hard work has opened doors for you,” she said.

Valedictorian Belinda Grunfeld encouraged her peers to “follow their bliss.” “Find the courage and strength to vanquish your worries,” she said.

Salutatorian Mira Sobhy encouraged the graduates to explore what they want to become. “Insight is the first step to learning,” she said. “Success is defined by each of you.”

Spinelli reflected on the past four years, and reminded his fellow graduates, “It is up to you to pave your own way and make your own mark.”

Levittown school board President Kevin Regan reminded the seniors that although their journey had been long, they had never been alone.

After a video with highlights of the seniors’ last year together, the graduates walked across the stage, one by one, to receive their diplomas and become alumni of the Levittown School District.

Sid Tanenbaum, who lived in Woodmere and owned a metal-stamping shop in Far Rockaway, where he was known more for his charitable ways than his two-handed set shot, has been honored for the past 30 years with a basketball tournament that raises scholarship money for students in the Five Towns.